Position 37:41.367N 26:56.794E

Nisos Samos is one of the larger islands being about 25 miles long by 12 miles wide in a west-east orientation. At its closest it is only a mile from the Turkish mainland. Pithagorion seems to be the principal town. The main street leading down to the harbour was the start of my walk…………..

………….which soon led to open countryside.

There are some ruins amongst the poppies of an early Christian cemetery.

Looking closer it appears the burials were in caves……..

……..with arched stone entrances.

Later it appears they built stone arched niches to brick remains behind

Further on there were some interesting wild flowers which appeared to have both blue/lilac and white flowers on the same stemhead

I walked on towards the airport where I spotted this little gem

The airport itself is not very impressive with only two flights this afternoon on the board.

I expect it gets busier in the season. On the way back to town I passed this house with a lovely garden and ……..

………the castle and basilica from a distance……

…..and closer up.

The flags are out because it seems to be Easter out here. The basilica is being repaired…..

….and you can see evidence of changes to the structure. There have been buildings on this site since at least the 2^nd century……….

……..with many changes as you can see from this picture. The castle has been much restored and is now a very interesting museum detailing the specific history of the site and the general history of Samos. Entry is free and it is well worth a visit.

Tomorrow Phil and I are hiring a four wheel buggy to tour the island. We will probably stay here another couple of nights.